𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚗𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛-𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚊𝚛

Chapter 3: Trespassing

Ella and Bella were heading back to Melbourne to face Anthony together. Before they had left, Ella had to say goodbye to Hamish. Although they both knew that she was coming back, They still acted like they would never see each other again. Maybe it's because they were helplessly in love with each other, Or maybe it's because deep down...They both knew that there was a chance Ella wouldn't come back. Bella was standing nearby, Watching the horizon and staring at the bridge they would have to cross as Ella and Hamish said their goodbyes. Ella wrapped her arms around hamish's neck and he wrapped his own around her waist, They pressed their foreheads together, closing their eyes. "I love you." "I love you too, I'll see you soon my love." Hamish released her, And that was that. Ella adjusted her backpack and set off with Bella at her heels

They were now over halfway to Melbourne, Making a shelter out of an old gas station. There was no gas in the cars or the tanks, But the gas station itself was still intact. "Do you think Anthony will find us here?" Bella asked as she inspected a nearby shelf. "Let's hope not, We're in his territory, But I doubt he would waste his time looking through an old abandoned gas station." Ella replied. After searching throughout the entire station, Bella found some food, Water, Blankets, A few towels, and candles. The supplies gave them more than enough to last them through the night.

Night came quickly, as the sun was setting, Ella pushed some old shelves to block the windows as precautions in case one of Anthony's patrols went through the area, And it also helped protect them both from the wind. It wasn't very comfortable to stay inside with the cold floor,Having only a mattress to separate them from it, But it was better than nothing. While Bella and Ella waited for the moon to rise, Ella looked out the window. There was no sign of any patrols or soldiers. She could hear Bella fidgeting next to her and tried to lighten her mood. "It's familiar here." Ella said, Looking up at the stars. Bella glanced over at her best friend, Seeing the smile on her face. "How so?" Bella finally questioned, Leaning back against a shelf. "Anthony would always use the stars to move around, He always used the north star to find out where to go next." "He wasn't very good at using the stars though, Was he?" Ella let out a short laugh, Still looking up at the stars. There was a few moments of silence before Bella spoke. "Do you ever wonder if he's looking for us?" Ella's smile dropped, She turned to look at her best friend. "Well, Of course he is Bella-" "No, Like, What if he misses us and he's looking for us to bring us home?" Bella said hopefully. Ella didn't reply straight away. Bella didn't really expect an answer anyway. "I'm sure he's fine. He's probably busy taking care of his soldiers right now, And he'll come around from his anger eventually and come looking for us." Bella smiled weakly. "Alright..." The two spent the rest of the evening talking about everything and nothing. Eventually it grew late, and Bella offered to go first watch while Ella slept, It turned out that even Bella wasn't immune to sleep deprivation, She fell asleep pretty fast. Ella however remained awake, She laid awake thinking about all that happened over the past few days, The bombing of Sydney...Was it actually Anthony that did it? Then the thought of Hamish crossed her mind, Ella felt as though it had been years since she had felt his touch, But in reality it had only been a day or so. As more thoughts circled her mind, Ella fell into a light sleep.

The sound of a truck's engine woke Ella up, Her heart skipped a beat as she realized what this meant...

It was one of Anthony's patrols.

Ella moved quickly to wake up Bella, She shook her best friends shoulders until her eyes opened. Bella opened her mouth to say something but Ella pressed a finger to her lips. "Patrol is here." Ella mouthed. Bella nodded and crawled towards the wall. They watched as the patrol pulled up outside the gas station, There was no way the driver could see them if they stayed hidden, So they just lay there as they observed the men. One of them walked through the door and approached the counter, Ella couldn't see who it was exactly. However the driver did notice them, It seemed he spotted their hiding spot. The man lifted his gun and pointed it straight at them, "Come out now!" "Who's there?" Bella whispered to Ella. Ella shook her head. She motioned to Bella to crawl under one of the tables. Ella heard footsteps approaching her hiding place, Slow and steady ones. "I got you now." Ella's heart dropped, Adrenaline kicked in and she leapt to her feet, Throwing a punch that hit the man directly in the face. He stumbled backwards, Regaining his composure. In that brief amount of time, Ella ran out of the back door, Hearing Bella running behind her. Twigs and fallen branches attempted to catch their feet as they ran over fallen leaves. Ella kept pushing herself to keep running until she heard the sound of a gunshot ring out, And then she heard Bella scream. Ella stopped in her tracks and turned to see Bella drop to the ground, Holding her leg. "THEY HIT MY FUCKING LEG!" Ella ran over to her best friend, Deciding what to do. They couldn't let Anthony take them in. "Okay, Hold on tight." Ella picked Bella up and continued running.